What every ceramics and glass inspection covers
Fired clay and glass share one trait: once a piece leaves the kiln or the annealing lehr, most faults are locked in. A crack, an underfired glaze or a stressed glass wall cannot be reworked; the piece is sorted out or shipped. So an inspection here is largely a check on the factory's own sorting.
- Quantity and status. Finished, sorted and packed goods by design, size, colour and, for tiles, shade and calibre lot.
- Breakage and hidden cracks. Chips, cracks and fire cracks, found by eye, by tapping (a sound piece rings) and, on sanitaryware, with ink or water.
- Surface against the approved sample. Glaze colour and gloss, print or decoration, pinholes, crawling, crazing, seeds and stones in glass.
- Dimensions and fit. Sizes, flatness and warpage, capacity, and how pieces fit together: tile to tile, pan to cistern, lid to pot, glass to stand.
- Function. Flush tests on toilets, stack and wobble checks on dinnerware, thermal shock screens on glass, water-tightness on vases.
- Marks, labels and documents. Origin marking, back stamps, "Not for food use" marks on décor, CE marking on tiles, and test reports that match the glaze, decoration and supplier being shipped.
- Packing. Dividers, crate build, carton strength and a carton drop test where the buyer's protocol asks for one.
Sample sizes follow ISO 2859-1; see the AQL guide. For tiles the sampling unit is often the carton, with several tiles checked from each one drawn.
How the checklist changes by product
| Product | Main risk | What the inspector adds |
|---|---|---|
| Vitrified and porcelain tiles | Mixed shade or calibre in one shipment; warped large formats | Shade panel lay-out, calibre and rectified-edge measurement, flatness and warpage, polished-surface stain check |
| Ceramic wall and floor tiles | Crazing of the glaze on a porous body; print banding | Glaze faults, décor and border set matching, inkjet registration, corner breakage |
| Sanitaryware | Hidden fire cracks; poor flushing; wrong fixing positions | Ink or water crack test, flush test, rough-in and fixing holes against the template |
| Stoneware dinnerware | Lead and cadmium from glaze; crazing; unstable plates | Glaze and decoration match to the tested sample, food-surface defects, wobble and stack fit, foot grinding |
| Terracotta and earthenware | Underfired, porous body; traditional lead glazes | Ring test, seepage, firing colour, marking of décor-only pieces |
| Glass tableware | Poor annealing; rim chips; decoration on the drinking rim | Polariscope strain check, rim finish, seeds and stones, lip-and-rim decoration |
| Glass décor and artware | Delayed cracking in transit; coating that peels or fades | Hand-blown variation against a limit sample, coating adhesion, glued joints, water-tightness |
Ceramic and glass pieces that are mainly décor or bathroom goods are covered with the home décor pages, for example ceramic bathroom accessories, terracotta and glazed planters and vases and decorative bowls.
Market rules for ceramics, glass and tiles
An inspection checks what can be seen and measured at the factory, and whether documents match the goods. Leach, slip, crazing and flush certification tests are done by an accredited lab; we can pull and seal the samples.
| Product | Market and rule | What it means at the factory |
|---|---|---|
| Tableware (food contact) | US: FDA CPG 545.450 (lead) and 545.400 (cadmium); 21 CFR 109.16 for decorative ware. See lead and cadmium in ceramics | Glaze and decoration must match the tested sample; décor pieces need the fired-on "Not for food use" mark and a stick-on label, or a hole through the food surface |
| Tableware (food contact) | EU: Regulation 1935/2004 and Directive 84/500/EEC. See EU food contact and LFGB | Written declaration of compliance for ceramics; glass-and-fork symbol or "for food contact" where needed |
| Tableware and glassware | Canada: Glazed Ceramics and Glassware Regulations (SOR/2016-175) | Leach limits by category, a separate limit for decoration within 20 mm of a drinking rim, and a bilingual permanent warning on pieces not meant for food |
| Tableware and glassware | California: Proposition 65 | Lead and cadmium in glazes and decorations; warning levels for tableware come from court settlements |
| Tiles | EU: CE marking under EN 14411; GB accepts CE for construction products for now. See UKCA and CE marking | Declaration of performance and CE marking that match the tile group and the factory |
| Tiles | US: ANSI A137.1; countervailing duty order on ceramic tile from India (16 June 2025) | Producer identity and origin documents matter, because duty deposits depend on the producer |
| Sanitaryware | EN 997 and EN 14688 (EU); ASME A112.19.2/CSA B45.1 and EPA WaterSense (US) | Product and certificate must be the same model; fixing dimensions and flush volume checked against the declared values |
For Gulf orders, tiles and sanitaryware fall under Saudi building-material rules; see SASO and SABER.
Where ceramics, glass and tiles are made in India
| Place | Status | Typical products |
|---|---|---|
| Morbi, Gujarat | Town of Export Excellence for ceramic tiles and sanitaryware (DGFT, Appendix 1B) | Vitrified, porcelain, wall and floor tiles; large slabs; sanitaryware |
| Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh | Town of Export Excellence for glass artwares (DGFT); Uttar Pradesh ODOP district for glass products | Decorative and utility glassware, bangles, glass shells for lamps |
| Bulandshahr district (Khurja), Uttar Pradesh | Uttar Pradesh ODOP district for ceramic products; Khurja Pottery is a registered geographical indication (application 178) | Tableware, dinner sets, mugs, bowls, vases, sanitaryware |
| Gorakhpur district, Uttar Pradesh | Uttar Pradesh ODOP district for terracotta, described on the ODOP site as GI-tagged | Terracotta figures, vases, lamps and planters |
Tiles dominate the trade. Department of Commerce TradeStat figures for FY2025-26 (provisional) show exports of US$1,820.31 million for porcelain and vitrified tiles (HS 690721), against US$177.92 million for sanitaryware (HS 6910), US$55.87 million for table, kitchen and décor glassware (HS 7013) and US$42.90 million for ceramic tableware other than porcelain (HS 6912).
Clear To Load is based in Jodhpur and covers every town in India. Morbi, Firozabad and Khurja are outside our base cities, so travel is charged at actual cost; see pricing. A ceramics order often mixes products from several units consolidated by one exporter; tell us where each item is made so the inspection can be planned at the right site.
Breakage, packing and loading
Most claims on ceramics and glass are for breakage, and most breakage starts with packing that was never tested. The inspector checks the packing method against the approved one and records it with photos:
- Tiles and slabs. Cartons strapped and corner-protected on pallets; large slabs in A-frames or crates braced so that slabs cannot flex. Wooden pallets and crates need ISPM 15 treatment and marks.
- Sanitaryware. Each piece in its own carton with moulded pulp, foam or corrugated inserts; nothing loose inside the bowl.
- Tableware and glass. Cell dividers or individual wraps so pieces do not touch; inner boxes fitted tightly into the master carton; a drop test on a packed carton where the buyer specifies it.
Weight is the other risk. A container of tiles reaches its weight limit long before it is full, so the load plan and floor spread matter. Container loading supervision checks counts, pallet condition, bracing and the seal.
Sources
- DGFT: Appendix 1B, Towns of Export Excellence (Morbi, Firozabad)
- ODOP Uttar Pradesh: Bulandshahr ceramic products
- ODOP Uttar Pradesh: Firozabad glass products
- ODOP Uttar Pradesh: Gorakhpur terracotta
- IP India GI registry: Khurja Pottery (application 178)
- Department of Commerce: TradeStat commodity-wise exports (FY2025-26, provisional)
- Federal Register: Ceramic tile from India, countervailing duty order (16 June 2025)
- Canada: Glazed Ceramics and Glassware Regulations (SOR/2016-175)
- FDA CPG Sec. 545.450, Pottery (Ceramics); Lead Contamination